On the night of the Nine-Tails, I shattered the Tailed Beast Ball with a single punch.

Even at night, Konoha University was still bustling with activity, with men and women strolling and chatting everywhere.

"Master Scorpion has a new work recently. This time it's not a body modification, but an exoskeleton that can be worn directly on the body. It's super cool!"

"You mean that one? He's definitely handsome and powerful, but he's way too expensive. Only someone with a fortune could afford him..."

"Have you heard? There are many geniuses among the freshmen who have received a lot of attention even before they went to university. There are even rumors that some of them are monsters who have already surpassed the strength of the Shadow."

"I really envy geniuses like them. With their strength and fame, they could easily stay at the school as teachers. Even if they don't stay, they can quickly rise to a high position as ninjas."

Upon hearing the topic of what would happen after graduation, Chojuro's expression turned somewhat somber.

"The gap between people is really huge. After graduating this year, I'll probably have to slink back to Wuyin in disgrace."

"I've never been first in my grade, and my results in the college league are just average."

If the Fourth Mizukage found out that I had spent a fortune on studying abroad but only achieved such mediocre results, my career as a ninja would probably be over upon returning to Kirigakure.

Seeing that Chojuro's mood was gradually dropping, and he was about to dig a hole and bury himself on the spot, Kankuro quickly spoke up.

"Don't be so pessimistic. How could they not even let you be a ninja anymore? Besides, your grades aren't..."

As he spoke, Kankuro suddenly remembered something: his score in this competition was by no means bad!

"You call the top 16 in the college league finals an average result? And didn't you get a top 10 finish in your grade? If that's considered an average result, then should someone like me, who only ranked 50th, just commit suicide on the spot?"

Kankuro's fists bulged with veins, wishing he could immediately have his puppet pull out a keyboard and send the pretentious guy's family tree to heaven.

"Is that so?" Chojuro smiled shyly.

Seeing Chojuro grinning foolishly only fueled Kankuro's anger, though he knew that Chojuro probably didn't mean it.

Because Chojuro was a shy and insecure person, in his own eyes, he was just a weak and helpless ninja.

However, as for his true strength, Kankuro heard that before coming to Konoha University, this guy was known as the number one prodigy in Kirigakure.

The two walked and talked, and eventually found themselves in a large playground.

This large sports field is located between the dormitory building and the teaching building. There are not many people there during the day, but many people come here to exercise or take a walk in the evening.

Kankuro glanced at the running track, where many couples were strolling; then he looked at the lawn, where many couples were chatting and laughing; then he looked at the steps, where many couples were...

"Maybe we shouldn't have come here." Kankuro's mood suddenly soured.

I walked to the playground without realizing it, almost forgetting that the playground is a forbidden place for single people at night.

Kankuro glanced at Chojuro and thought to himself that it was alright; at least there were two of them. Although it wasn't a man and a woman working together, it was still better than being alone.

"Shall we go back?" Chojuro asked.

“Since we’re already here, let’s walk around a couple of times before going back,” Kankuro replied.

Going back as soon as you enter the playground because there are too many couples is practically admitting defeat to those awful couples.

The two walked onto the track and strolled leisurely, occasionally acting as mentors to comment on the students who were singing confidently on the playground.

"This singer is bad; there's no technique, it's all emotion."

"This person is alright, but why does he have an accent?"

He doesn't have the courage Kankuro singing himself, but he does have the courage Kankuro secretly pointing at others, and it's quite a lot.

As Kankuro rounded the bend, he heard a rather unusual female voice. He couldn't quite judge the singing, but the voice itself was quite distinctive, giving off the vibe of a well-behaved girl.

Kankuro glanced at her curiously. She was a girl with short black hair, a pretty face, and wearing a red bodysuit.

Kankuro glanced at her, and his gaze involuntarily began to move downwards. The girl had long legs and was wearing black fishnet stockings.

Her fair, long legs paired with black fishnet stockings created a striking color contrast that exuded a wild beauty, causing Kankuro to slow his pace slightly.

"This is good, it's very long... I mean, the song is long and melodious." Kankuro, who almost blurted out what he was thinking, quickly changed his words.

"No need to explain, I understand." Chojuro smiled and nodded, also slowing his pace.

Just kidding, we've lived together for so long, how could I not know who you are?

Once they were out of the range of the singing, their pace returned to normal until they circled back to that spot.

After walking two laps, Chojuro asked, "Shall we go back to the dorm now?"

Kankuro thought for a moment and said, "Anyway, there's nothing to do back home, so let's walk around a bit more and get some fresh air."

So the two continued their walk on the playground.

Whenever they reached that bend, the two would tacitly slow down.

After walking five laps, as they approached the bend, Kankuro suddenly suggested, "We've walked for so long, why don't we sit down and rest for a while?"

Chojuro nodded in agreement. Although he could usually run fifty laps without breaking a sweat, he was definitely tired now.

The two sat down not far from the girl who was singing.

Kankuro glanced over there seriously a few times. He hadn't dared to look too closely when he left, only glancing at it out of the corner of his eye.

Kankuro then noticed that the singing girl was not alone; there was a girl sitting on either side of her.

After sitting down, Kankuro realized that several groups of boys of similar age were already sitting nearby.

Some listened to the music and observed silently, just like them, while others pretended to chat with their companions, deliberately raising their voices and saying things that sounded impressive but were actually quite obscure, trying to attract someone's attention.

Kankuro inwardly despised this behavior while thinking about how to let others know he was the son of the Kazekage without saying a word.

Just then, two more boys walked by. One of them joked with the other, who was taller. The taller boy smiled and nudged the other boy before turning back and walking to the girl who was singing.

The tall boy scratched his head awkwardly. "Excuse me, you sing really well. Can I have your contact information?"

The people who were chatting loudly stopped, and the girl who was singing also stopped. Kankuro's heart tightened.

"Go back to where you came from, and don't disturb my singing." The singing girl said in a tone that was completely out of character for her singing, as if she was saying, "If you don't leave now, you'll be in big trouble."

The tall boy had no choice but to slink away.

Kankuro's feelings became quite complicated.

Although the outcome was what he wanted, the process was quite unexpected in many ways.

This girl's temper seems to be just like her sister Temari's.

He had been hesitating about whether to ask for her contact information, but he completely lost his courage.

Being rejected in public might mean the end of your college life.

No, he was a senior in college, and it seemed like he was about to finish his college life anyway. Kankuro felt even more desolate.

Although he was inwardly complaining, he actually envied the courage of the person who had just spoken. At least the other person took action, while he, Kankuro, had never proactively asked a girl for her contact information.

'Thinking back on it, it seems like I didn't do anything during my four years of university...' Kankuro couldn't help but recall his decadent university life.

My freshman year was when I was most motivated, thinking that I could rely on this big platform to complete my transformation.

He discovered that there were simply too many geniuses out there, and he was nothing at all. Gradually, he gave up on reality and became a keyboard warrior.

The more Kankuro thought about it, the more a strange courage welled up in his heart. He wanted to make a change in this last year!

Let's start making a change from the very first time we strike up a conversation.

"I want……"

"She looks like Kurotsuchi, the third-year student." Chojuro seemed to recognize the girl who was singing.

"It's a pity, she seems to have a childhood friend named Deidara."

"By the way, what were you about to say?"

"It's alright now." Kankuro's expression calmed down, and he prepared to go on a killing spree after returning to his dormitory.

Chapter 602 Ninja World Martial Arts Tournament

"Teacher Nagasawa." Neji walked skillfully into the Konoha University office building, went to the principal's office on the top floor, and greeted Nagasawa.

"Oh, it's Neji. What's up?" Nagasawa asked with a smile.

"I want to participate in this year's Ninja World Martial Arts Tournament," Neji stated his purpose directly.

For ordinary students, Neji, who had already won first place in the college league, was a mountain they could only look up to.

However, Neji was not prepared to stop there, because he had ideals and ambitions, and they were very big.

He wanted to break the Hyuga family's long-standing rules regarding the main and branch families, and to dismantle the Caged Bird Seal that oppressed all Hyuga branch families.

To accomplish this relatively peacefully, Neji must demonstrate absolute strength and absolute talent.

He wants to become the most talented Hyuga in a thousand years, the strongest Hyuga in a thousand years.

No one dared to say anything when someone like him broke this thousand-year-old convention.

Winning first place in the college league only means you are the strongest among college students, but the Ninja World Martial Arts Tournament is different. The Ninja World Martial Arts Tournament is a competition open to all the best ninjas in the entire ninja world.

Even if you lose in the first round and only get a place in the top 64, as long as you make it to the finals, you will still receive a lot of rewards and become famous in the ninja world.

If you can make it into the top eight or even take first place, then you are a true top-tier ninja in the ninja world, the kind that is recognized by the entire ninja world.

Neji was very confident in himself, and the eleven years of arduous training with Nagasawa were the source of his confidence.

Even if they can't get first or second place, they should still have a chance to reach the semifinals or quarterfinals.

When he's showered with honors, his clan elder uncle will have to seriously consider whether he should abdicate in favor of a more worthy successor.

"This year's martial arts tournament..." Nagasawa's expression became somewhat subtle.

"Teacher, is there any problem with this year's martial arts tournament?" Neji asked, noticing that Nagasawa's expression was a bit strange.

The first martial arts tournament was the most prestigious because Nagasawa, in order to make a name for himself, brought a large number of top ninjas from the Ninja World Alliance to participate.

The event featured not only the Kage of the Five Great Villages, but also leaders of other ninja villages, high-ranking officials from various villages, and even mythical figures like the Sage of Six Paths. Furthermore, Nagasawa himself participated, making the event's prestige quite evident.

Although there were many top players in the later editions, the grand occasion of the first edition was never repeated.

Yongze had his own reasons for not participating later; if he had, the first place would have been a foregone conclusion.

After all, Nagasawa is in a league of his own.

"Should I say you're lucky or unlucky?" Nagasawa thought for a moment and decided to reveal some information to Neji.

"You know that several aliens from the Otsutsuki clan have come to the ninja world before."

Neji nodded. Many people know about the Otsutsuki clan now, it's just a matter of how much they know.